Ep. VIII.
(Written to S. Basil shortly after his Ordination
as Priest, probably toward the end of a.d.
362.)
I approve the beginning of your letter; but what
is there of yours that I do not approve? And you are convicted of
having written just like me;4736
| 4736 The Editors render
“And you were captured just as I also was circumscribed,”
etc., but the Greek hardly bears this rendering. |
for I, too, was
forced into the rank of the
Priesthood, for indeed I never was eager
for it. We are to one another, if ever any men were, trustworthy
witnesses of our
love for a
humble and lowly philosophy. But
perhaps it would have been better that this had not happened, or I know
not what to say, as long as I am in ignorance of the purpose of the
Holy Ghost. But since it has come about, we must bear it, at
least so it seems clear to me; and especially when we take the times
into consideration, which are bringing in upon us so many heretical
tongues, and must not put to shame either the hopes of those who have
trusted us thus, or our own lives.
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